Headed by Jesse Jur, assistant professor in the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, the NEXT group seeks to create cost-effective, energy-efficient wearable technology that’s powered by the user’s own body.

Jur’s team has gained attention for projects like customizable, iron-on sensors that monitor the heart’s performance and transmit the readings to a smartphone, or that monitor environmental levels of potentially dangerous gases like carbon monoxide and ozone.

The NEXT group has also explored bioluminescence in fashion through a collaboration with recent College of Textiles graduate Jazsalyn McNeil, who joined the group as a “fusion designer” to meld her design sensibility with the group’s research. McNeil’s Pulse Dress incorporates screen-printed sensors that make LED lights blink with the wearer’s heartbeat. NEXT and McNeil hope that the eye-catching dress will both influence fashion and draw attention to the possibilities of wearable electronics.

Heating Up Wearable Tech

In recent years, smartwatches have turned up on the arms of millions of people who want convenient ways to keep track of their fitness, but these still depend on conventional batteries. At NC State’s Center for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies (ASSIST) — a National Science Foundation Nanosystems Engineering Research Center — researchers are developing innovative health-monitoring devices that are battery-free and body-powered.

“The goal of ASSIST is to make wearable technologies that can be used for long-term health monitoring, such as devices that track heart health or monitor physical and environmental variables to predict and prevent asthma attacks,” said Daryoosh Vashaee, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering in the NC State College of Engineering.

A T-shirt (left) and armband (right) embedded with thermoelectric generators.

Vashaee and a team of undergraduates and faculty members have developed a new approach for harvesting body heat and converting it into electricity to power wearable electronics. The prototype armbands and embedded sensors in T-shirts are lightweight, conform to the shape of the body and can generate far more electricity than previous lightweight heat-harvesting technologies.

“We want to make devices that don’t rely on batteries,” Vashaee said. “And we think this design and prototype moves us much closer to making that a reality.”

Taking the Sting Out of Diabetes

For some people with serious health issues, wearable technology has the potential to offer more than bells and whistles — it could make their treatments easier and even save lives.

Zhen Gu, an associate professor in the UNC/NC State Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, has developed a glucose-responsive insulin patch for people living with Type 1 Diabetes. At around the size of a penny, the thin, square patch contains more than a hundred tiny, painless needles that supply the wearer with insulin as needed. This potential treatment could help to ensure consistent blood-sugar levels — and spare patients regular injections.

Zhen Gu and his team work in his biomedical engineering lab on Centennial Campus.

Gu, who has been honored as one of MIT Technology Review’s “Innovators Under 35” for his work with innovative drug-delivery systems, received $4.6 million in funding from JDRF (formerly the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) and multinational pharmaceutical company Sanofi for the project. The patch is currently in animal trials. Gu is also working on patches to deliver melanoma drugs directly to tumor sites and to deliver blood thinners as needed to prevent blood clots.

Walking Wearables

Amputees have always been among the earliest adopters of wearable technology, as even minor advances in prosthetics can markedly improve their mobility. Helen Huang, associate professor of biomedical engineering and director of the Rehabilitation Engineering Core in the UNC/NC State Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, has made it her mission to develop the next generation of powered prosthetic limbs.

Huang’s projects include software that allows powered prosthetics to tune themselves automatically, making the devices more responsive and lowering the costs associated with powered prosthetic use.

An automatically tuned prosthetic in action in Helen Huang’s lab.

“People are dynamic — a patient’s physical condition may change as he or she becomes accustomed to a prosthetic leg, for example, or they may gain weight,” said Huang. “These changes mean the prosthetic needs to be re-tuned, and working with a prosthetist takes time and money.”

Huang’s team has also worked on technology that translates electrical signals in human muscles into signals that control powered prosthetic limbs — enabling sensors in the prosthetics to follow simple cues from the user’s brain such as “open hand” or “close hand.”

A Bright Idea for Safety

For College of Textiles alumnus Jeremy Wall, a near miss with a car while he was riding his bike one night became an unexpected source of inspiration: He now heads a company, Lumenus, that’s developing clothing and accessories with embedded smart LED lighting.

Wall, a 2014 graduate in fashion and textile management, began working on his tech with the help of an undergraduate research scholarship while he was still a student. His goal was to help cyclists, motorcyclists and runners be more visible to motorists at night while staying stylish and functional during the day.

Alumnus Jeremy Wall, founder of Lumenus, outside the NC State College of Textiles.

The company will soon hit the market with apparel and accessories including jackets, vests, leggings, backpacks and armbands. It’s also licensing its technology to companies such as backpack manufacturer Timbuk2 and working with the Department of Defense to develop sensors for military gear.

Lumenus has also created an app that adds extra features to the apparel. For example, the wearer can enter a destination on the app, and the LED lights on the garment will flash strategically at intersections or other potentially hazardous points along the route.

Wall recently returned to NC State for help getting his company off the ground, enlisting three College of Textiles undergraduates to work with Lumenus as part of their senior design project.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/12/wearable-tech/feed/0A Fashionable Response to Zika Protectionhttps://cnr.ncsu.edu/news/2016/11/a-fashionable-response-to-zika-protection/
https://cnr.ncsu.edu/news/2016/11/a-fashionable-response-to-zika-protection/#respondMon, 14 Nov 2016 18:08:41 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=408361https://cnr.ncsu.edu/news/2016/11/a-fashionable-response-to-zika-protection/feed/0Celebrate All Things NC State During Red and White Weekhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2016/10/red-white-week/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/10/red-white-week/#commentsWed, 19 Oct 2016 18:34:58 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=401271The annual Red and White Week leading up to next Saturday’s Homecoming football game against Boston College at Carter-Finley will have a slew of activities, from Chancellor Randy Woodson’s annual fall address next Friday afternoon to food and beer presentations to free Howling Cow ice cream on Stafford Commons for students.

There’s a little bit of everything, including learning and lectures, during the seven-day celebration of NC State’s past and bright future, culminating on Friday with the homecoming parade down Hillsborough Street and the invitation-only kickoff of the university’s largest ever fundraising campaign at Reynolds Coliseum.

Red and White Week is about students, staff and the alumni who return to see what’s new on campus during this annual celebration. The Pack Howl concert returns to renovated Reynolds Coliseum Wednesday night, featuring hip-hop star T.I., while alumna and celebrity chef Ashley Christensen will discuss her debut cookbook, Poole’s: Recipes and Stories from a Modern Diner on Tuesday.

Textile Showcase:
5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Talley Student Union (outside of Stewart Theatre)
Come learn more about the College of Textiles and each of its unique degree programs. The showcase will feature senior design projects and posters.

An Evening with Shawn Johnson
7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Talley Student Union
Shawn Johnson will talk about her career as a gymnast. She is the 2008 Olympic balance beam gold medalist and team all-around and floor exercise silver medalist.

Tuesday, Oct. 25

Three-Minute Thesis Competition (presented by the Graduate School)
3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Hunt Library
The Three-Minute Thesis is a research communication competition designed to challenge doctoral students to present a compelling oration in just three minutes.More>>

Red and White Week Pep Rally
7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Wolf Plaza
Get pumped to cheer on the Wolfpack for the big Homecoming football game.

The Goodnight Scholars Program Presents: Nina Tandon
6:30 p.m.
Talley Student Union (Stewart Theatre)
Nina Tandon, a biomedical engineer whose TED Talks about engineered human tissue have been viewed over two million times, was named a 2011 TED Fellow and a 2012 Senior Fellow. She is the CEO and co-founder of EpiBone, the world’s first company to use electrical signals to grow artificial tissue for transplants and other therapies.More »

Chef Ashley Christensen
7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
James B. Hunt Jr. Library
Ashley Christensen ’98, acclaimed chef and restaurateur, will discuss her debut cookbook, Poole’s: Recipes and Stories from a Modern Diner. Christensen will be interviewed on stage by NC State’s Cat Warren, who was Christensen’s former English professor. They’ll talk about recipes from the book, Christensen’s commitment to the revitalization of downtown Raleigh and her philosophy of building community through the shared experience of food. The event is free and open to the public but registration is required.More »

Wednesday, Oct. 26

Industrial Design Lectures: Design Influence
4 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Burns Auditorium, Kamphoefner Hall
Speaker Mary Ellen Dohrs, who received a degree in industrial design from the Pratt Institute, was one of the first female industrial designers hired by General Motors after World War II. She was responsible for designing interiors of GM show cars and specialty cars for VIPs. Following her work at GM, Dohrs went on to work for Sundberg Ferar supervising accounts like IBM and Packard. She later was successful in creating water color paintings, pen and ink, and sculptures. Open to the public.

Industrial Design Lectures: Design Influence
5:10 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Burns Auditorium, Kamphoefner Hall
Industrial Designer Mark Templeton ’75, former CEO of Citrix, will talk about how his career path was influenced by design and how you can use these skills for any career choice. Open to the public.

Red and White Food and Beverage Festival (Presented by The State Club)
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The State Club
Enjoy food, beer and wine from NC State alumni vendors at the fifth annual Red and White Food and Beverage Festival.Registration and more »

Amazing Alumni Panel: Contributing to Raleigh’s Renaissance
7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
James B. Hunt Jr. Library (Duke Energy Hall)
Join a panel of NC State alumni helping to make Raleigh one of the top places to live in the United States. Moderated by Chris Tonelli, owner of So & So Books, the panel includes Craig Reed of Younger Brother Productions; Jasmine Flood, founder of Riada Adair Design Co.; Jed Gant of Myriad Media; Eleanor Hawthorne of the City of Raleigh; and others.

Arts NC State – Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde
7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Thompson Hall
In three short months, Oscar Wilde, the most celebrated playwright and wit of Victorian England, was toppled from the apex of British society into humiliation and ruin. Drawing from trial documents, newspaper accounts and writings of key players, Moises Kaufman ignites an incendiary mix of sex and censorship with a cast of characters from George Bernard Shaw to Queen Victoria. Additional performance on Thursday, Oct. 27.More »

Visit Carmichael6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
University Recreation invites you, your family and guests to work out and/or tour NC State’s Carmichael Gym. Visit the member services suite, located across from the main entrance in the breezeway, to begin your tour or workout.

Hillsborough Street Community Service DayAll day
Hillsborough Street

College of Design 3D Printing and Virtual Reality Demo
3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Bayley IT Lab, 203 Brooks Hall (The DIY Cartography exhibition in the Brooks Hall Gallery is open to the public.)
College of Design alumni and friends are invited to attend a show-and-tell of Bayley IT Lab, tour the space and see print capabilities.Register online »

Under the Microscope: Exploring the Intersection of Education, Research, Food & Beer4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Lonnie Poole Golf Course (Carol Johnson Poole Clubhouse)
This reception will be an interactive celebration of science, education and research and the role beer and food play to bring it all together. We’ll offer hands-on demonstrations and opportunities to talk with faculty. At 5:30 p.m., Rob Dunn, professor of applied ecology, will give a brief talk about brewing with wild yeasts and insights gained from his interdisciplinary research experiences.Register online » (Presented by the NC State Foundation)

Tough Howler5:45 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Centennial Campus
The Tough Howler is a three-mile Halloween-themed obstacle course race where participants complete in teams of two or four. Costumes are encouraged.

Evening of the Stars (presented by the NC State Alumni Association)
This invitation-only event celebrates the winners of the College Distinguished Alumni Awards, the Wolfpack Club’s Ronnie Shavlik Award and the Alumni Association Awards.
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Talley Student Union

Visit Carmichael6 a.m. – 9 p.m.
University Recreation invites you, your family and guests to work out and/or tour NC State’s Carmichael Gym. Visit the member services suite, located across from the main entrance in the breezeway, to begin your tour or workout.

Belltower Tour
10:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.
Ever wonder what the inside of the Alumni Memorial Tower looks like? Join Tom Stafford, NC State’s former vice chancellor for student affairs, for an exclusive look inside and learn more about the history of this cherished NC State landmark.More »

College of Engineering Events
12 p.m. to 4 p.m. (12 p.m. Barbecue Lunch at Engineering Oval Lawn) (2 p.m. Program at IEI Duke Energy Hall in James B. Hunt Jr. Library)
Centennial Campus
Connect with other alumni and learn from Dean Louis Martin-Vega and other distinguished faculty members and students about the impact NC State engineers are making in North Carolina and around the world.More »

Lawyers Alumni Reunion
11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Aloft Hotel: Hillsborough Street
The NC State Lawyers Alumni Society is gathers for its annual meeting to renew connections with the university and fellow alumni.More »

13th Annual Porch Party
4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Nelson Hall
The Poole College of Management, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Education, College of Natural Resources, College of Sciences and the Libraries are teaming up to host the 13th annual Homecoming Porch Party.More »

Red and White Week Parade (presented by University Housing)
6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Hillsborough Street
Join campus clubs, student organizations and the NC State Marching Band for the annual Homecoming parade down Hillsborough Street.

Visit Carmichael9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
University Recreation invites you, your family and guests to work out and/or tour NC State’s Carmichael Gym. Visit the member services suite, located across from the main entrance in the breezeway, to begin your tour or workout.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/10/red-white-week/feed/1Pack Builds a Block for Raleighhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2016/09/pack-builds-a-block-for-raleigh/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/09/pack-builds-a-block-for-raleigh/#commentsWed, 07 Sep 2016 20:04:05 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=389441When Clare Jordan started NC State’s Habitat for Humanity chapter 25 years ago, her volunteer list had one name on it: hers.

So Wednesday morning, as Jordan was joined by Chancellor Randy Woodson, Mr. and Ms. Wuf, and dozens of members of the Build-A-Block red-ribbon organizing committee to break ground on what will be the largest Habitat build ever associated with a U.S. college chapter — using more than 10,000 volunteers to build 11 townhomes on the edge of Raleigh, at a cost of $715,000 — she was just a little overwhelmed.

The 1991 graduate with a degree in English sat with her daughter, Katie Gray Altmann, a current junior in industrial design, at Wednesday’s wall-raising to listen to remarks by Woodson, former Raleigh mayor and NC State alum Smedes York, athletics director Debbie Yow, textiles graduate student Sarah Paluskiewicz and Wake County Habitat for Humanity CEO and president Kevin Campbell.

Jordan still clearly remembers the program’s humble beginnings, when she recruited friends majoring in architecture and engineering to help her construct the first of 22 homes built by NC State students, staff and faculty, with some $300,000 raised over the last quarter century.

“I just can’t believe it,” says Jordan, who is now a professional fundraiser for a charitable organization in Winston-Salem. “It’s just tremendous. I’m glad my school is rallying around such a big project and undertaking this commitment.”

The neighborhood where the build will take place is located just off Lake Wheeler Road, about a mile from Centennial Campus. Students, faculty and alumni groups can sign up through Habitat Wake’s Build-A-Block site to volunteer.

Work will begin immediately on the first five houses and will continue through the fall semester. Campus chapter volunteers participated in Wednesday’s wall-raising, and the NC State wrestling and gymnastics teams will be among the first of 14 varsity teams who have signed up to work on the project in the fall and spring, as part of the athletics department’s Platinum Hammer sponsorship of the project. Other platinum partners are the campus Habitat chapter and the MetLife Foundation.

“This is such a great day for NC State,” said Woodson. “We have 34,000 students and 10,000 members of faculty and staff. That is a lot of hands we can put to work on this project.” Woodson and his wife, Susan, are serving as the co-chairs of the Build-A-Block effort.

“One of the things that we do at universities is try to help our students understand what it means to be part of the communities where they live after they graduate,” he said. “Habitat for Humanity provides a great outlet for them to give back to the community where they live.”

About half of the necessary funds to complete the 11 homes has been raised so far, and fundraising for the other half is ongoing, according to York. Shack-A-Thon, the NC State Habitat chapter’s annual fundraising project, is slated for Sept. 19-23 on the Brickyard.

For now, however, volunteers are needed to get the homes built.

“We have a lot of people who can swing hammers,” Woodson said.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/09/pack-builds-a-block-for-raleigh/feed/3Spotlight on College of Textiles Dean David Hinkshttps://news.ncsu.edu/2016/08/spotlight-on-college-of-textiles-dean-david-hinks/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/08/spotlight-on-college-of-textiles-dean-david-hinks/#respondTue, 16 Aug 2016 19:53:06 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=383841David Hinks became dean of the NC State College of Textiles in January 2016 after serving as its interim leader since July 2014. During his time as dean, he has helped establish a clear vision and strategic goals for the college. We recently spoke with Hinks about the college’s strategic progress and what he’s looking forward to this year.

What lessons from your first year as dean will inform your decision-making and engagement with faculty, staff and students in the coming year?

There are two key lessons I have learned serving as dean of the College of Textiles, the recognized world’s leading institution in textile education, discovery, innovation and service:

1) Seek out and listen to mentors.

No matter who we are or what responsibilities we carry, we all can benefit from experienced, compassionate, thoughtful and ethical mentors who can help us see the big picture, provide objective support and give us confidence in our actions.

2) Be open to change and challenge the status quo.

Both higher education and the textiles industry are entering a period of converging disruption; this disruption brings both challenges and unique opportunities from which we can reap major rewards if we align a strategic vision with a bold and creative “Think and Do” approach. By listening to our stakeholders and mentors, we can make informed choices to build a strong future for our students, staff, faculty and the citizens of the great state of North Carolina.

What success(es) are you most proud of from your first year as dean?

For any forward-leaning higher education institution to be successful, it must make a sincere commitment to create a welcoming, open and diverse community that is committed to equity and excellence.

The college leadership team and I are pleased to have been able to strengthen both our quality and diversity and are committed to continuing on this path.

Recently, we’ve established approximately average equity in salary between female and male faculty members at all ranks. Also, both of our academic departments have become more diverse and the ratio of female to male faculty members has increased. I also take pride in the many ways our faculty and staff support a resurgent textiles industry as evidenced by research and technical service contracts of more than $14 million; a record number of enrolled graduate students; and an historic number of companies attending our annual career fair.

How do you plan to build on the success of last year?

​In the past year we completed a major revision to our college’s strategic plan that defines new investments in programs, staff, faculty and infrastructure. This year, we are implementing that plan to bring unprecedented philanthropic, corporate and government support to our creative students, renowned faculty and our remarkably dedicated staff. We intend to be a leader in an the upcoming capital campaign to support key education, research and service initiatives including expansion of service learning programs and enriching experiences​ here and abroad.

We will continue to grow our faculty and have established exciting new staff positions that will advance our educational and research missions. For the first time, we have a dedicated instructional developer to help maximize our faculty’s impact and effectiveness in on-campus and online education programs. We have also invested in a college research proposal developer to help faculty and staff win grants that in turn will support our students. We also plan to hire an individual to oversee development of a new Student Life Center, an initiative to provide enhanced leadership and personal and professional development opportunities to our students. ​

What is your role in creating a dynamic and high-achieving college?

My role as dean is to provide a clear vision and direction and ​an expectation for meaningful collaboration and excellence. I also believe it is my responsibility to empower our ​faculty, staff and students by providing adequate resources and infrastructure. This is achieved by ​engaging​ our supporting partners in providing opportunities and resources to our talented students, faculty and staff.

​As dean, how do you support faculty and students in their academic careers?

​As dean, I take very seriously the need to listen to faculty, staff and students’ ideas, needs and concerns, as well as those of our industry stakeholders. I then work continuously to provide resources and opportunities to both our current and future talent in ways that align with a bold strategic vision. ​I also recognize the need to be adaptable in our rapidly changing society and environment.

Learn more about how Dean Hinks and the College of Textiles provide a science-based education that develops new leaders, supports industry and advances textiles research.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/08/spotlight-on-college-of-textiles-dean-david-hinks/feed/0A Fighting Chancehttps://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/06/24/collaborative-research-help-wildland-firefighters-survive/
https://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/06/24/collaborative-research-help-wildland-firefighters-survive/#respondFri, 05 Aug 2016 14:54:48 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=381581https://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/06/24/collaborative-research-help-wildland-firefighters-survive/feed/0Steering Students to Successhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2016/08/steering-students-to-success/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/08/steering-students-to-success/#commentsTue, 02 Aug 2016 16:06:40 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=380201Jeff Joines pulls a toy car out of a cardboard box on his desk and sets it on a table in his office. On a piece of paper he traces a floor plan for a single-car garage and pushes it across the table at me.

“See how many times you can roll the car into the garage without hitting the walls” he tells me.

The first time I try it, the car veers to the right, rolling over the line representing the garage’s side wall. The next time, the car stops just millimeters from what would be the back wall. It turns out I don’t drive much better in this simulation than I do in real life. That doesn’t matter, says Joines, an associate professor of textile engineering, chemistry and science. We’re just collecting data.

Jeff Joines’ hands-on teaching methods are popular with students in NC State’s demanding textile engineering program. Photos by Marc Hall.

After a few minutes of this, Joines enters the results of the exercise into a frequency distribution chart, then makes a rough histogram. Like my driving, it leans to the right — hardly the perfectly proportioned bell curve you’d expect from random inputs.

“If this were data for a manufacturing process, it would be well beyond permissible tolerance limits,” he says.

Although it’s been more than a few years since I’ve taken a statistics course, I nod appreciatively. It may not be the result I wanted, but it’s my data. And the chart makes sense.

“That’s the point,” Joines says. “Students learn better if they’re involved in collecting their own data. Then, the charts and graphs don’t seem so abstract.”

Honored for Excellence

Joines’ engaging hands-on teaching methods haven’t gone unnoticed. He recently won the 2016 Board of Governors Excellence in Teaching Award from the University of North Carolina system, an annual honor given to one faculty member at each of the system’s 17 institutions.

“I’m thrilled that NC State and the university system recognize the importance of teaching and value great teachers,” he says. “I’m also humbled as I look at the list of people who have won in the past and at the other teachers who are being honored this year.”

Joines uses inquiry guided teaching methods.

His commitment to student success has paid dividends for the College of Textiles. In a recent survey of textile engineering alumni, 84 percent praised Joines’ computer-based modeling course as one of the most useful classes they took at NC State. Joines created the interdisciplinary course in cooperation with the industrial engineering department to help students learn how to use data to make better decisions and to build decision support systems.

“I like helping students,” he explains. “I like seeing them succeed.”

Joines, who earned his bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D at NC State, appreciates the value of excellent teachers. His faculty mentor, Russell E. King, the Edward P. Fitts Distinguished Professor of industrial engineering, encouraged his interest in teaching while he was still a graduate student.

“He said, ‘You know how to take complicated subjects and help students understand them. And you push students to work hard.’ I guess that’s true. I have very demanding classes but students respond well because they understand these skills will help them once they leave NC State. Also, they don’t want to disappoint me because they know how much I care for them,” Joines says.

Engaging the Next Generation

In addition to his teaching duties, Joines serves as associate department head in textile engineering, chemistry and science. That gives him the opportunity to support student recruitment efforts.

“When we go out to high schools, we often find that students don’t know much about textile engineering,” he says. “We tell them to think about the excitement of designing new products, everything from artificial aortas to composite materials for the aerospace industry.”

Student retention is less of a challenge, he notes.

“Our retention rate is 98 percent,” Joines says. “Once they get in, they never leave us because we have many caring and inspiring faculty.”

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/08/steering-students-to-success/feed/4Collaborative Research to Help Wildland Firefighters Survivehttps://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/06/24/collaborative-research-help-wildland-firefighters-survive/
https://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/06/24/collaborative-research-help-wildland-firefighters-survive/#respondMon, 27 Jun 2016 12:45:47 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=371311https://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/06/24/collaborative-research-help-wildland-firefighters-survive/feed/0Gridders Get a Grypperhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2016/06/gridders-get-a-grypper/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/06/gridders-get-a-grypper/#commentsTue, 14 Jun 2016 14:51:08 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=368101As senior design project locations go, standing on the sidelines of Carter-Finley Stadium during the Kay Yow Spring Football Game was about as good as it gets for three College of Textiles seniors.
College of Textiles seniors Jamie McLain (left), Desirae Scruggs and Shannon Tart (right) work on the next generation of Gryppers.

What made the April 9 game even more special for Shannon Tart, Desirae Scruggs and Jamie McLean was seeing former and current Wolfpack players wearing Gryppers, a set of 10 finger sleeves that are the brainchild of former NC State football players Jamelle Eugene and DaJuan Morgan.

The two players have been working on the product—designed to be replacements for annoying full-handed gloves and one-use athletics tape—for a couple of years now, but the result of their initial manufacturing process was not what they were looking for. So they partnered with the College of Textiles’ senior design program—the capstone project for textile engineering and textile technology majors, under the direction of Russell Gorga and Jess Jur—to find new solutions.

This year, there were 21 design projects, many of which were sponsored by well-known national companies and institutions, such as athletics apparel-maker Under Armour, NASA, Hanesbrands and Firestone. Each group competed in a year-long competition on their projects, with the six winners announced at the end of the spring semester.

Gryppers, however, is a small, locally owned company that needed help immediately.

Former Wolfpack football players DaJuan Morgan (left) and Jamelle Eugene of Gryppers.

That’s where Tart, Scruggs and McLean came in. The three students spent the entire 2015-16 academic year researching new materials, new manufacturing processes and other ways to improve on the original product’s shortcomings, with the hope that those improvements will let Eugene and Morgan take the new version of Gryppers to market this summer.

The students used a knitting machine to create a seamless tube made of multiple performance materials, considered some 96 different yarn patterns (with 20 different prototypes), slathered on gallons of silicones and other tacky compounds to create unique grip pads for each individual sleeve and came up with several supply-chain strategies to take to Eugene and Morgan.

They had their final prototype ready on April 26, and the football entrepreneurs couldn’t have been happier with the results.

“What we’ve created [in Gryppers] is a multi-sport product that allows users to optimize grip and tangibility unlike any other product on the market,” Eugene says. “Our patented compression technology stabilizes finger ligaments, offering better support and overall control. The whole concept is to be a bridge between what gloves are for gripping, but with the protection and freedom of movement of taping.

“It also protects against cuts, abrasions and blisters.”

Eugene, whose sports management degree included a concentration in entrepreneurship, came up with the idea for innovative sleeves while on a flight to California. Knees squashed under a tray table, he sketched out some ideas on a napkin. He took them to Morgan, his former roommate who was finishing his three seasons in the NFL, and HQ, the downtown Raleigh entrepreneurial hub that helps new companies get off the ground.

“I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it,” Morgan says.

College of Textiles senior Desirae Scruggs works on the next generation of Gryppers.

The two friends figured they could leverage their knowledge of athletics into creating a product that would be more convenient and more cost effective for all tactile sports. Both moved to Raleigh and worked closely all year with the three students on multiple versions of their idea.

The new and improved idea is catching on. After graduating in May, Tart and Scruggs continue to work for Gryppers. In early June, the company received a $50,000 grant from the NC Idea Foundation to help take the product to market.

Eugene and Morgan hope to hit the wholesale market this summer and see their dream-come-true idea on the field this fall.

They won’t be selling just to football teams, however. Gryppers can be used in any sport where digital dexterity and manipulation are needed to replace smelly, sweat-soaked gloves or time-consuming tape.

“The idea behind Gryppers is to have something that is breathable and compressible,” Morgan says. “They give protection and they don’t restrict the range of motion. We’ve put a lot of thought into the product, based on our years of experience as players.”

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/06/gridders-get-a-grypper/feed/4New Address for Textiles, Graduate Schoolhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2016/06/new-address-for-textiles-graduate-school/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/06/new-address-for-textiles-graduate-school/#respondWed, 08 Jun 2016 14:27:58 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=366221The College of Textiles and the Graduate School are getting a new street address, not because they are moving, but because the Center for Technology and Innovation, opening this fall, will make it necessary to renumber other buildings on the block.

The new center at the corner of Main Campus Drive and Research Drive will assume the address of 1010 Main Campus Drive, which is currently the address for the College of Textiles and the Graduate School. Both entities are already transitioning to their new address, 1020 Main Campus Drive, and both will retain their current campus box numbers.

The issue of physical addresses will become more critical once the Center for Technology and Innovation opens. Right now, packages are still finding their way to Textiles or the Graduate School at both 1000 and 1020 Main Campus Drive. But there may be some confusion over deliveries once the new building is open and there is a building on Main Campus Drive.

Our campus partners can help by checking your websites to ensure that the physical addresses for College of Textiles and the Graduate School are updated as quickly as possible. Questions? Contact Susan Fandel (College of Textiles) and Natalie Hampton (the Graduate School).

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2016/06/new-address-for-textiles-graduate-school/feed/0Fast-Lane Futurehttps://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/05/05/internships-internships-put-textile-student-fast-lane-future/
https://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/05/05/internships-internships-put-textile-student-fast-lane-future/#respondThu, 05 May 2016 21:10:42 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=355921https://textiles.ncsu.edu/blog/2016/05/05/internships-internships-put-textile-student-fast-lane-future/feed/0Sustainability Fund Gives 15 Grants for 2016https://sustainability.ncsu.edu/nc-state-sustainability-fund-awards-161000-campus-grants/
https://sustainability.ncsu.edu/nc-state-sustainability-fund-awards-161000-campus-grants/#respondTue, 03 May 2016 17:42:04 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=354021https://sustainability.ncsu.edu/nc-state-sustainability-fund-awards-161000-campus-grants/feed/0Hinks Named Dean of NC State’s College of Textileshttps://news.ncsu.edu/2015/12/hinks-named-dean-of-textiles/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/12/hinks-named-dean-of-textiles/#commentsThu, 31 Dec 2015 19:20:30 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=319921Dr. David Hinks has been named dean of North Carolina State University’s College of Textiles after serving as its interim leader since July 2014. Provost Warwick Arden announced Hinks’ permanent appointment, which is effective Jan. 1, 2016.

“Dr. Hinks has established a clear vision and strategic goals for the College of Textiles,” Arden said. “We anticipate continued growth in textile research, innovation and public-private sector partnerships under his leadership.”

An expert in color and dye chemistry, Hinks serves as the Cone Mills Professor of Textile Chemistry and director of NC State’s emerging Forensic Sciences Institute. He leads more than 130 faculty and staff who mentor 1,000 undergraduates and more than 200 graduate students. The College of Textiles has more than 160 contracts with industry partners and eight government agencies totaling more than $14 million.

“For 17 years I have been a proud faculty member of the College of Textiles, which is recognized throughout the world as the leading academic textile institution. To be asked to serve as the dean is a remarkable privilege and honor,” Hinks said. “Our students, staff, faculty, alumni and partners are unmatched when it comes to their talent, passion and creativity in advancing the resurgent textiles industry. I am humbled and excited to be entrusted to lead one of the foremost colleges in the great state of North Carolina.”

Hinks has secured more than $8.5 million in research support over the course of his NC State career and has several patents and patent disclosures. He is a member of both NC State’s Academy of Outstanding Teachers and Academy of Outstanding Faculty Engaged in Extension. He serves on the North Carolina Forensic Science Advisory Board and is a member of the North Carolina Economic Development Association.

Hinks has mentored dozens of graduate students and postdoctoral research associates, along with visiting scholars and undergraduate students. He has published more than 150 peer-reviewed and conference papers about color science, and forensic and environmental textile chemistry. Three of his graduate students have won the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists student paper competition; two others have won National Science Foundation graduate fellowships and one received a prestigious Goldwater Scholarship.

Born and raised in Derby, England, Hinks worked for Courtaulds Research for two years prior to attending the University of Leeds, where earned a B.S. and Ph.D. in Colour Chemistry. In 1993, he moved to NC State’s College of Textiles as a postdoctoral research associate and later a visiting assistant professor investigating the genotoxicity of dyes and pigments. In 1996, he joined Milliken & Co. in Spartanburg, South Carolina, as a research and development chemist. He returned to NC State as an assistant professor in the College of Textiles in 1998. In 2003, he was promoted to associate professor and became the program director for a new polymer and color chemistry program. Hinks was promoted to full professor in 2009. He served as associate head and director of graduate programs in the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science from 2012 to 2014.

The College of Textiles is recognized as the global leader in textile innovation: education, research and service. NC State produces more textile graduates per year than any other university in the country, fostering new technologies and leading the way in textile and fashion design, product development, brand marketing, basic and applied science, engineering, and technology transfer. These efforts fuel economic development in a wide range of areas related to the textile industry. With 200,000 square feet of research and teaching space and more than 60 labs, the College of Textiles offers extensive testing, analysis, research, design, fabrication and product development capabilities.

– ford –

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/12/hinks-named-dean-of-textiles/feed/10Meet Candidates for Deans of PCOM, Textileshttps://news.ncsu.edu/2015/11/open-forums/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/11/open-forums/#respondThu, 19 Nov 2015 15:01:15 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=312481The provost’s office invites the NC State community to meet some of the finalists under consideration to lead the Poole College of Management and the College of Textiles.

First Forum in Poole College

The first on-campus interview of a candidate for dean of the Poole College of Management will be held next week.

Annette L. Ranft, currently at the University of Tennessee, will speak at an open forum, 3–4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 23, in Nelson Hall, Room 2405. Ranft will share her vision for the college and answer questions. Her resume and a complete interview schedule are available online.

Additional PCOM candidate interviews are being finalized and will be announced soon.

Forums in the College of Textiles

On-campus interviews for three College of Textiles dean candidates will be held the week after Thanksgiving. Forums are scheduled as follows:

Monday, Nov. 30, 3–4 p.m.

Melur “Ram” Ramasubramanian, Clemson University

Wednesday, Dec. 2, 3:30–4:30 p.m.

Laura Dunn Jolly, University of Georgia

Thursday, Dec. 3, 3–4 p.m.

David Hinks, NC State University

These forums will be held in the Convocation Room at the College of Textiles, 1000 Main Campus Drive on Centennial Campus. The candidates will share their vision for the College of Textiles and answer questions. The candidates’ resumes and interview schedules will be available shortly.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/11/open-forums/feed/0Committees to Lead Dean Searcheshttps://news.ncsu.edu/2015/05/dean-searches/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/05/dean-searches/#respondWed, 13 May 2015 15:31:12 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=256761Efforts to recruit new deans for the Poole College of Management and the College of Textiles are now underway, Provost Warwick Arden announced this week.

The nomination committee for the Textiles search will be chaired by PCOM Dean Ira Weiss. Members of the committee are:

A representative of the Staff Senate will also be named to the committee.

For updates on the committees’ progress, visit the Administrator Searches Web page.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/05/dean-searches/feed/0Outfitting First Respondershttps://news.ncsu.edu/2015/05/outfitting-first-responders/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/05/outfitting-first-responders/#commentsMon, 04 May 2015 20:06:38 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=234041What pant and shirt combination should a well-dressed EMT or firefighter be wearing? That’s the design challenge NC State’s textiles experts are tackling over the next 18 months.

They’re creating the next generation of uniforms for first responders – clothing that’s more comfortable with better protective features.

Researchers with the university’s Textile Protection and Comfort Center (T-PACC) are designing and testing a new base ensemble of shirts and pants for emergency workers as part of a $718,000 grant project funded by the Department of Homeland Security.

“This base ensemble is what a firefighter would have on before grabbing a helmet and turnout coat on the way to a call,” says Marc Mathews, a T-PACC research associate. “We want to equip first responders with clothing that’s more flame resistant, repels water and protects against jagged debris at a scene. At the same time, the clothing has to be comfortable and appealing enough for a firefighter to wear while working a 24-hour shift.”

The T-PACC team will create and test prototypes using commercially available materials. A subcontractor, Protect the Force Inc., will help manufacture 150 of the prototypes for field testing with firefighters and EMS workers.

The project builds on T-PACC’s longstanding research to develop clothing that resists heat, flames and chemicals and offers improved performance and comfort. NC State researchers have pioneered many of the tests used to evaluate clothing for emergency workers, military uniforms and protective gear, and high-performance sportswear.

The 2015 honorees are Roger Barker, Burlington Distinguished Professor, College of Textiles; Salah M. Bedair, professor of electrical and computer engineering, College of Engineering; Hugh Devine, professor of parks, recreation and tourism management, College of Natural Resources; Trudy Mackay, William Neal Reynolds and Distinguished University Professor of Genetics and Entomology, College of Sciences; and Coby Schal, Blanton J. Whitmire Distinguished Professor, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

The Holladay Medal is named for Col. Alexander Quarles Holladay, the university’s first president. It recognizes career contributions of faculty members in teaching, research and service. Winners receive a medal and a framed certificate, and their names are inscribed on a plaque in the NC State Faculty Senate chambers.

Roger Barker with Pyrohands, a device used for testing fire-resistant gloves.

Barker, an expert in textile measurement technologies, is founding director of the Textile Protection and Comfort Center, which provides research services to industry, emergency workers and military personnel. His work has been incorporated into international standards for protective gear for firefighters, hazardous materials crews and emergency medical technicians. Through his leadership, T-PACC provides $25 million in infrastructure to support teaching, research and outreach. A recipient of the Outstanding Teacher and Board of Governors Teaching Award in the College of Textiles, he has chaired or co-chaired the graduate research of more than 50 master’s and doctoral students.

Salah M. Bedair

Bedair is a scientific pioneer who has significantly advanced four different areas of electrical and computer engineering. His research on solar cells, light-emitting diodes, atomic layer deposition and spin electronics is having a major impact on development of new, innovative devices for energy applications. These contributions affect our everyday lives and point the away to future renewable and efficient sources of energy. A faculty member for 37 years, Bedair has published more than 400 articles, attracted $25 million in research funds and graduated 46 Ph.D. students.

Hugh Devine and Perver Baran go over stormwater maps.

Devine, an innovator in geospatial analysis, has been instrumental in bringing technology-enhanced education to NC State. He helped found the university’s Center for Geospatial Analytics and developed the Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit for collaborative work with federal agencies. His research program has increased understanding of wildfires, natural disasters, drinking water and resource protection, forest management and food safety. He and his students have provided GIS analysis for over 50 nonprofits. A 2011 Alumni Distinguished Graduate Professorship recipient, he has graduated more than 80 Ph.D. and master’s students and 200 professional science master’s and graduate certificate students.

Trudy Mackay

Mackay, an internationally known specialist in quantitative genetics, was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2010 for her research on how physical and behavioral traits are affected by genes and the environment. Since joining NC State in 1987, she has secured multiple, overlapping grants for research and training programs. She serves as principal investigator of the Initiative for NC State’s Maximizing Student Diversity program and as director of the universitywide program in genetics and Initiative for Biological Complexity postdoctoral program. She teaches a number of graduate courses and has mentored 25 graduate students and 31 postdoctoral fellows. She is a former editor-in-chief of Genetics Research and past president of the American Genetics Association.

Coby Schal does basic and applied research on arthropod pests such as this cockroach.

Schal is one of few entomologists to make distinguished contributions in both basic and applied research, ranging from molecular biology and genetics to ecological and behavioral interactions. His research focuses on roaches, ants, termites and other arthropod pests of homes and human-built structures. He is an elected member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a fellow of the Entomological Society of America. He helps young faculty establish their programs and inspires students with coursework on animal behavior and physiology. He has been a thesis adviser for 20 Ph.D. and nine master’s degree students.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/04/2015-holladay-medal/feed/1From Studio to Stagehttps://news.ncsu.edu/2015/04/from-studio-to-stage/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/04/from-studio-to-stage/#commentsTue, 14 Apr 2015 16:14:10 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=244481Art2Wear is celebrating its 13th year as a student-organized runway show that presents fashion, costume and wearable sculpture created by the students of the NC State University College of Design and College of Textiles.

Hosted by the College of Design, the event is expected to attract more than 4,000 people this year. The purpose? To challenge the audience and designers to question the boundaries and conventional definitions of “fashion.”

“Art2Wear [is] very conceptual. It’s having an idea you feel strongly about and executing the idea in every way possible,” said designer Marina Pappas, senior.

“I think the main point is freedom of expression and being unafraid to express yourself and be bold.”

And bold they are. Art2Wear’s broad definition of “fashion” ranges from products or sculptural pieces that serve as cultural artifacts and illustrations of identity to reflections of society and starters of revolutions.

To even get the chance to explore this definition of fashion, designers have to audition for a spot in the lineup. Once they make the cut, it’s a long road to the finish line that is the stage.

“The fact that it’s taken a year basically to get here is a lot more long-term than anything I’ve done before,” said designer Emma Ptak, senior.

“I work pretty well under pressure, so it’s a pretty familiar feeling. I’m ready to see how it all comes together.”

From studio to stage

The designers shared their goals for their collections with us 11 days before the April 17 event.

“I want to invoke emotion, invoke inspiration and cause people to relate to what they see,” said Bethany Faulkner, junior.

Senior Georgia Hobbs wants to surprise the audience.

Pappas wants people to feel like they can express themselves freely.

Senior Sara Clark creates a story of wanderlust and wants to inspire those trying to decide what journey or route to take in their life.

Senior Morgan Cox wants to celebrate the joy of childhood through clothing.

“This is the first year we’ve had children in the show. I feel like it’s a chance to have more fun and be more creative because kids can wear really wacky things.”

No matter the goal for each collection, Art2Wear brings the designers together and gets them ready for what’s next.

“I think that it helps us all prepare for the world. Not only are we making a collection, but we’re working with professionals,” said senior Rachel Bridges.

“When we go out to search for jobs we’re going to have to work with account managers, directors. The people putting on the event are as important as anyone, and it’s a great show in that aspect.”

The designers are in the home stretch before the main event, but they agree that they can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“I’ve compared this journey to a marathon many times because you don’t get to stop until it’s done,” Faulkner said. “If you let up now, it means you have to run harder later, so we’re running as hard as we can until we hit the finish line.”

Pourdeyhimi’s research focuses on technologies to improve water purification and air filtration, biomanufacturing, drug delivery systems, agricultural production and protective materials for the military and civilians. The associate dean for industry research and extension in the College of Textiles holds more than 80 U.S. and international patents and has been instrumental in launching three start-up companies.

As director of NC State’s Nonwovens Institute, Pourdeyhimi has his finger on the pulse of industry. The institute brings together nearly 70 companies, government and university experts to create next-generation engineered fabrics.

Nonwovens are big business. North Carolina has attracted more than $720 million in investment from nonwovens companies in the past 10 years. In addition to American businesses, corporations from Israel, Japan, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, Brazil and Mexico have invested in nonwovens in the state.

With teaching based on cutting-edge research, Pourdeyhimi is educating a new generation of international leaders at NC State. They include more than 100 Ph.D. students sponsored by the institute in the last 15 years who are now transforming the industry. More than 45 Ph.D. students are currently being funded thanks to his work, which includes basic and applied research in excess of $30 million.

Pourdeyhimi is the 30th professor from NC State to win the O. Max Gardner award, given annually to faculty in the 17-campus system for significant contributions to the welfare of the human race.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/04/highest-honor/feed/5Textiles Alum Plunges Into the ‘Shark Tank’https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/03/bui-shark-tank/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/03/bui-shark-tank/#commentsFri, 06 Mar 2015 14:28:51 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=229721During her senior year at NC State, textiles alumna Sharon Bui set an ambitious goal for herself: earn a spot on “Shark Tank,” the ABC reality show where budding entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to famous funders.

Less than three years later, she’s achieved that goal. In a March 6 episode, Bui secured funding from two sharks for Frill, a clothing company she co-founded as a fashion and textile management student. Frill sells apparel and accessories for sororities and bridesmaids.

NC State News caught up with Bui recently to talk about how her experiences at NC State prepared her to run a business — and swim in the “Shark Tank”:

Bui: My College of Textiles education was always paralleling with my startup company. Everything I was learning in the classroom was directly applying to what I was doing to run my business. I will never forget the classes I took at the College of Textiles: retail math, global trade and sourcing, entrepreneurship, advertising, textile law, fashion designers, all of my fashion merchandising classes. Everything I learned in the classroom really helped me with my startup. I still apply tactics that I learned in school to my business today. One of my dreams is to teach fashion entrepreneurship at NC State.

NC State News: I know that you worked with the university’s Entrepreneurship Initiative (EI). What role did they play in helping you get Frill off the ground?

Bui: The Entrepreneurship Initiative contacted us a few months after we started Frill. It was really amazing being a member of this organization because they always had my best interests in mind. Any time big, important people, whether they were famous or well-versed in the industry, would come visit, the Entrepreneurship Initiative would always invite me. When big media would contact the EI, such as Forbes magazine and WRAL, they would always refer me. It gave Frill lots of publicity and connections.

There were also little things here and there, where I needed them to help me with something and they would always lend a hand. I am forever grateful they contacted us after seeing our business in The News & Observer and wanted me to join their family. Every time I come around the EI, it’s like coming home.

NC State News: How did you end up on “Shark Tank”?

Bui: The October before I graduated, I made a promise to myself: “I AM going on ‘Shark Tank.'” I made it my mission to graduate and apply to “Shark Tank” right after I graduated. So in January 2014, instead of going to the open casting call in Atlanta where you only pitch your idea for one minute, we paid my videographer friend to make our 10-minute audition video. During that video, we had to answer 22 questions about our business and ourselves. We sent in the video and the application packet, crossed our fingers and never looked back.

The video ended up not working when it got to casting and they gave me a call in early February 2014 and asked me to quickly upload it to YouTube. Fortunately, they loved the video and they loved us. The next step was turning in our product for a quality check. The step after that was turning in a packet that asked a bunch of financial questions. I’m pretty sure there was yet another packet after that. After that round, we got designated producers to help us develop our pitch.

We filmed at Sony Studios in Culver City, Los Angeles on June 24. Everything has been such a blur since stepping on the Sony stage with Mark Cuban staring deep into my soul.

NC State News: What was that experience like?

Bui: I always tell people, the day I pitched on “Shark Tank” is, to me, bigger than my wedding day. It was that important to me, it was that huge to me, and it was pinnacle of owning a business that I started in college. I had barely any money in the bank when I started Frill, and I never asked my parents for a dime. So when the casting department told us we were among the 169 contestants chosen out of 40,000 applicants, I have never felt so honored.

Leading up to filming, I was extremely nervous and scared of Mr. Wonderful (Kevin O’Leary, a “Shark Tank” judge) and negative feedback. I lost a lot of sleep in the days leading up to filming. I tell people that it was extremely amazing to be able to see how filming a show works. As Americans, we all grow up watching TV shows thinking everything we see is realistic, but I learned so much about everything that goes into filming a reality show. For example, I wasn’t expecting them to do my make-up about four times, or to have 12 cameras to the left of me and for the sharks to be so humorous. I will never, ever forget the experience in the tank, and I will never forget a word the sharks said.

NC State News: Did your experiences at NC State help prepare you for the “Shark Tank” experience itself?

Bui: A lot of people don’t take sororities seriously. It’s funny because when I look back and think about how I became the businesswoman I am today, I owe it all to my NC State professors, mentors, connections and my sorority. If I wasn’t a part of Greek Life in college, I would have never thought of the concept for Frill.

There is one class and one professor, though, that really stuck with me. Genessa Fratto Devine, my advertising professor, made us do a final project where we had to pose as an ad agency and film a pitch in front of the whole class. I think my legs shook more during that than during “Shark Tank”! That one project helped prepare me for “Shark Tank” more than anything I’ve ever done.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/03/bui-shark-tank/feed/3In Memoriam: Peter Reeves Lordhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2015/02/in-memoriam-peter-reeves-lord/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2015/02/in-memoriam-peter-reeves-lord/#commentsThu, 05 Feb 2015 14:39:26 +0000https://news.ncsu.edu/?p=221311Peter Reeves Lord, an award-winning researcher and professor emeritus at NC State College of Textiles, died in Raleigh on Jan. 22, 2015. He was 91.

A native of Maidstone, Kent, England, Lord was a World War II veteran to emigrated to the United States in 1969 to teach at NC State from the University of Manchester Institute of Technology, where he became an expert in the field of open-end spinning. He served on the faculty until his retirement in 1990.

His research in yarn manufacturing and staple fiber yarn spinning led to many awards, culminating in the 1991 Warner Memorial Medal from the Textile Institute.

He is survived by three children and six grandchildren. A memorial service will be held in his memory on Saturday at 11 a.m. at Raleigh’s Christ Church, located at 120 E. Edenton St.

The Chancellor’s Innovation Fund is helping those researchers and others move their research to the marketplace. Each year since 2010, the fund has supported a new group of projects with the potential to yield marketable solutions to pressing problems.

This year, six research teams received funding from the 2014 Chancellor’s Innovation Fund:

‘Cut and Replace’ Gene Editing

The ability to edit select DNA sequences of interest – to add, delete, activate or suppress specific genes – is the holy grail of genetics research, including the molecular basis for many diseases.

Rodolphe Barrangou uses a system called CRISPR-Cas to take aim at certain DNA sequences in bacteria. CRISPR stands for “clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats,” and Cas is a family of genes and corresponding proteins associated with the CRISPR system. Essentially, bacteria use the system as a defense mechanism and immune system against unwanted invaders such as viruses; now, that same system is being harnessed by Barrangou and colleagues to quickly and precisely target certain genes for editing.

An associate professor of food, bioprocessing and nutrition sciences, Barrangou is now working on a new set of genome editing tools that cuts the targeted DNA and sets the stage for precise genetic modifications. His work holds promise in manipulating relevant bacteria for use in food and biotechnology applications and in model organisms used in agriculture, biotechnology and medicine.

Extreme Biofuels

Saltwater algae produce oil that can be converted to biofuels without using up valuable land and freshwater resources. The problem? It’s not cost effective. NC State researchers Heike Sederoff, Amy Grunden, Robert Natelson and Kelly Zering have figured out a way to solve that problem with the help of extremeophiles.

Extremophiles are organisms that live in extreme environments, like hot springs, acid lakes or polar ice caps. These organisms produce enzymes that are useful in industry – “extremozymes” that can work under extreme conditions and are used in detergents that help clean our laundry, or in food to make your cheese taste less bitter, or even to help dispose of deadly chemical weapons like sarin gas.

The researchers figured out a way to take the gene responsible for a particular enzyme’s production from the extremophile, and put it in the algae. The algae then produce both the oil for biofuels and the extremozyme of interest. The cost of biofuel production is offset by the sale of the extremozyme and enables production of a commerically viable renewable liquid transportation fuel.

Identifying ‘Vulnerable’ Arterial Plaque

Engineering professors Xiaoning Jiang and Paul Dayton have developed a new ultrasound device that could help identify arterial plaque that is at high risk of breaking off and causing heart attack or stroke.
Existing state-of-the-art technologies are capable of determining if plaque is present in the arteries, but can’t tell whether it’s vulnerable. That makes it difficult to assess a patient’s risk.

“Our goal was to develop something that could effectively identify which plaques are vulnerable,” Dayton says. “The Chancellor’s Innovation Fund will enable us to test contrast-enhanced intravascular ultrasound imaging in preclinical models and further validate our technology for commercialization and eventual translation into patients.”

No Fridge? No Problem

NC State food scientist Josip Simunovic is a pioneer in the field of aseptic processing, a system for rapidly heating and packaging food products in a sterile environment. His innovations, which have earned 10 U.S. patents, have made it possible for the food industry to deliver shelf-stable foods like soups and fruit snacks in packaging that preserves their flavor and nutritional value without requiring refrigeration.

Now, Simunovic is developing a prototype of a modular aseptic processing system that could be used by R&D labs and small-scale food processing companies for a fraction of the cost of an industrial-scale system.

Simunovic says the lower-cost system will give “insurgents” in the food industry the tools to develop a wide variety of innovative food products such as daring new hot sauces for an emerging generation of food enthusiasts.

Thermoelectric Textiles for Waste Heat Recovery

Half of the energy generated in the U.S. is lost as waste heat, much of it during manufacturing.

But what if wasted power could be harvested and be re-purposed to power other electronics in an industrial plant, like LED lighting? That’s the vision of textile researcher Jesse Jur and former research professor Mark Losego (now at Georgia Tech). They’re creating flexible thermoelectric textiles that harvest power from temperature differentials, such as those between heated pipes and cold air.

Textiles with embedded electronics are flexible enough to wrap around a pipe, stretch over walls and fit into nooks and crannies, generating DC voltage that could supplement other power sources. Thermoelectric textiles work with low-temperature heat loss – something that current technologies don’t do – and are less expensive to manufacture than existing designs.

The team, which recently added postdoctoral student Krishamraju Ankireddy, is developing a prototype for testing in the lab and with industry partners.

Variable Fuel Injectors Could Make Car Engines Cleaner, More Efficient

While the development of new technologies to replace fossil fuels is the focus of many researchers, NC State engineering professors Tiegang Fang and Greg Buckner are working on a simple change to the geometry of spray fuel injectors that they believe will offer a double dose of improvement for an American economy that consumes 385 million gallons of gasoline a day.

They are developing a new injector that optimally adapts both the direction and rate of fuel flow in an internal combustion engine and automatically changes the timing of when fuel is sprayed in the up-and-down cycle of a cylinder. They hope to increase engine efficiency by as much as 10 percent, while also reducing emissions in a cleaner-burning engine.

Major car makers have shown interest in the first- and second-generation prototypes the researchers have made in their labs on Centennial Campus, but they would like to see a full working engine before they commit to installing something in an upcoming model. That’s the next step in the researchers’ goal of making your engine less prone to pit stops.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/10/cif-2014/feed/0Red-Collar Researchhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2014/10/elephant-collar/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/10/elephant-collar/#commentsMon, 20 Oct 2014 12:49:34 +0000http://news.ncsu.edu/?p=183041Thanks to the real-world ingenuity of NC State textile and engineering students, there’s a passel of elephants in South Africa who’ll find it impossible to forget which villages they’re supposed to avoid.

The collar, created in collaboration with electrical and computer engineering students Layne Whaley, Peter Panburana, Courtney Comeford, Emma Besaw and Justin Keaton, transmits sounds and vibrations that mimic bees and ants, which elephants avoid. Powered by solar-panel-charged batteries, the waterproof collar has GPS tracking capability and uses a strategy similar to an invisible pet fence.

With support from the U.S. Army Research Office and a partner agency, Adventures With Elephants, the NC State team headed to South Africa over spring break to try out two prototypes on the animals — a real think-and-do challenge.

The students faced big obstacles, starting with detours caused by flooding. The powerful, water-loving elephants gave the collar and its electronics a serious workout, too, forcing students to improvise on the spot.

“You can’t just run down to Lowe’s for replacement parts,” Barnes says.

NC State textiles and engineering students work out the kinks in a collar designed to divert elephants from South African villages.

Hampered by a balky Internet connection in the field, enterprising team members had to figure out their own ways to make the device work. All of the students’ work led up to the moment when results played out in real time. As an elephant approached a GPS-mapped boundary, team members activated the collar and held their collective breath.

“The elephant heard the sound and felt the buzz on the side of the neck, and turned away,” Ray recalls with a smile.

The results lasted longer than the students had hoped.

“Almost two months later, the elephant still didn’t want to go back to the area,” Besaw says.

The project was such a success that Siggins, who was born in South Africa, is still there working this semester, the first extension of its kind for a textiles engineering senior project.

Siggins will follow up by making improvements based on her field tests in South Africa. She’s working on fully integrating the collar’s electronics into a more durable package that can withstand the elements of Africa.

Group adviser Jesse Jur, a faculty member in textiles engineering and chemistry, says the project is a prime example of the benefits of hands-on learning.

“An experience like this puts you out of your comfort zone and changes the project requirements completely,” Jur says.

High expectations are built into textile engineering and textile technology students’ senior design classes. Barnes, Ray, Siggins and their teammates brought home lasting affection for elephants and the confidence that comes from knowing their design held up to the demands of a harsh environment.

In addition to winning honors at the Senior Design 2014 event, their project gives the 2014 graduates an attention-grabbing accomplishment for job interviews — an elephant story no recruiter can forget.

McCord, who holds joint appointments in the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science in the College of Textiles and the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the College of Engineering, will join the College of Natural Resources Aug. 1 as associate dean for research.

Did we mention that she’s also director of the Global Health Initiative in the Office of International Affairs?

With her new position, McCord will hold academic rank in the Department of Forest Biomaterials.

Working Across Disciplines

In a career spanning two decades, McCord has built an interdisciplinary portfolio of research focused on improving human health and wellness through novel textiles that prevent and treat disease. And she’s an expert in assembling and leading multidisciplinary research teams.

Those are precisely the skills that the College of Natural Resources wants to leverage. Under the leadership of Dean Mary Watzin, CNR is moving to increase both internal and external research collaborations and to compete for high-impact research grants.

McCord says the focus on collaboration is sparking new thinking and new energy across campus, resulting in innovations like the Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program and the One Health initiative spearheaded by the College of Veterinary Medicine.

“More and more, interdisciplinary partnerships are bringing new perspectives to units and colleges,” she says. “Rather than thinking about the impact of our research on one particular discipline, we’re thinking about the broader impacts. Expertise in a core area is still important, but now we’re exploring how to use that expertise in concert with others to address complex problems that span disciplines.”

McCord says the College of Natural Resources is poised to take a leadership role in environmental health and sciences, specifically in addressing the grand challenges of food security, clean water and global health.

Watzin welcomed McCord to the college in an email message Wednesday: “Through her work, Marian has earned a national and international reputation for solving practical global health challenges. She will bring creativity, energy and a genuine appreciation of the power of collaboration to the College of Natural Resources.”

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/07/cnr-mccord/feed/0Hinks Named Interim Dean of Textileshttps://news.ncsu.edu/2014/06/interim-textiles-dean/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/06/interim-textiles-dean/#respondThu, 05 Jun 2014 18:36:28 +0000http://news.ncsu.edu/?p=23856Provost Warwick Arden suspended the search for a new dean of the College of Textiles last week and appointed professor David Hinks to serve as interim dean effective July 1. Blanton Godfrey, who has served as dean for 14 years, is returning to the faculty at the end of June.
David Hinks will serve as interim dean of textiles effective July 1.

In a statement distributed May 30, Arden said a search committee recently completed a round of candidate interviews but was unable to reach consensus on finalists for the position.

“I respect the wisdom of the committee and felt it best to put the search on hold for now and restart it in the coming academic year,” Arden said.

Hinks is the Cone Mills Professor of Textile Chemistry and director of the Forensic Sciences Institute. He is a member of NC State’s Academy of Outstanding Teachers and Academy of Outstanding Faculty Engaged in Extension, and serves on the Park Scholars Advisory Council and the North Carolina Forensic Science Advisory Board that was established by the North Carolina General Assembly in 2011.

A native of Derby, England, Hinks earned a Ph.D. in color chemistry from the University of Leeds in 1993.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/06/interim-textiles-dean/feed/0A Sustainable Solutionhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2014/05/tyson-huffman/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/05/tyson-huffman/#commentsFri, 30 May 2014 16:25:24 +0000http://news.ncsu.edu/?p=29961In the developing world, the absence of affordable sanitary pads is more than a health and hygiene issue — it’s an economic and educational problem, too.

The solution to that problem is a cheap, sustainable, locally sourced sanitary pad. Researchers at NC State and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, working with nonprofit partner Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE), developed such a solution for deployment in Rwanda.

But Raleigh and Cambridge are a long way from the Rwandan capital of Kigali. It took a particular set of skills to cover the distance between success in the lab and results in the field, skills that 32-year-old NC State junior Tyson Huffman acquired as a Marine, a construction worker, a farmer, a restaurant manager and a process engineer for a paper mill.

For most of the last year, Huffman has been in Kigali, leading the effort to build a facility that can manufacture 1,000 sanitary pads a day.

“This guy went over there and did what I don’t think any faculty member or any student could have done,” said Med Byrd, associate professor of paper science and engineering at NC State. “In the space of about three months, with no tools, he took them from two machines in the middle of a parking lot to a dedicated crew making fluff pulp.”

That pulp is the heart of the project. In 2009, SHE founder Elizabeth Sharpf and a group of MIT students set out to find a sustainable, inexpensive way to make sanitary pads from agricultural byproducts local to Rwanda. They developed a two-step process for turning banana fibers and water into a fluffy pulp and making pads from that pulp. The chemical-free material is more absorbent than anything commercially available, Byrd said.

SHE turned to NC State to take the project from the research lab to the real world. Textile and biomedical engineering professor/director of Global Health Initiatives in the Office of International Affairs Marian McCord, Byrd and others refined the process and then sought someone who could go to Rwanda in 2013 and scale the project up. Several recent chemical engineering graduates applied, but none of them had Huffman’s unique skills.

“He’s a prototypical example of ‘think and do,’” Byrd said.

Huffman has served as a “MacGyver-in-residence,” said Connie Lewin, director of marketing and strategic partnerships for SHE. When the disappearance of Huffman’s luggage on the way to Rwanda deprived the project of needed washers, he replaced them with bottle caps. He designed a process that sped fluff-drying time by 400 percent and worked with his team to build a system for recycling wastewater.

“He’s creating new tools and spending time with our staff there so when he leaves they’re fully equipped and empowered to run the production facility on their own,” Lewin said.

NC State junior Tyson Huffman (right) and a team member repair equipment at a facility producing sanitary pads in Rwanda. (Photo by Huffman)

Eventually, SHE plans to manufacture 250,000 pads a year and distribute them cheaply to local schools, Lewin said. That could be a game-changer for Rwandan girls and women. On average, a Rwandan woman loses $215 in annual income due to work days missed during menstruation, according to SHE estimates. The average Rwandan earns $578 a year, according to the United Nations.

Success would also create economic prosperity in Kigali. Huffman manages a team of 12 Rwanda employees, and they’ll continue producing pads after he leaves. The potential for a lasting, sustainable impact drew Huffman to the SHE project.

“The word ‘sustainable’ has become a buzzword and is thrown around too loosely,” he said. “I don’t really believe in charity. Throwing money at a problem is certainly not sustainable. However, creating a business employing local people, using agricultural waste and breaking even is the definition of sustainable.”

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/05/tyson-huffman/feed/1A Research Treasure Trovehttps://news.ncsu.edu/2014/05/a-research-treasure-trove/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/05/a-research-treasure-trove/#respondThu, 08 May 2014 00:27:35 +0000http://news.ncsu.edu/?p=28581The next generation of cutting-edge NC State solutions in forensic science, cancer treatment, solar energy and more may come from a decidedly old-school source: dye.

The Eastman Chemical Company has donated its Max A. Weaver Dye Library — more than 100,000 dye and fabric samples in all — to NC State. After decades as a tool for Eastman scientists and engineers, it will be available to researchers from across the academic spectrum and around the world.

“This priceless collection could contain the dyes for the next generation of solar panels, the next generation of photodynamic cancer therapies, the next generation of environmentally responsible textile dyes,” said NC State textile chemist David Hinks, director of the emerging Forensic Sciences Institute, who will oversee the dye library research.

The dye collection will be a “treasure trove” for NC State’s world-leading faculty and researchers doing innovative, interdisciplinary work in a range of fields, Hinks said.

Medical researchers and dye chemists such as NC State Ciba professor Harold Freeman use dyes to develop targeted cancer treatments. “The dyes are designed to dye cancer cells and not healthy cells,” Hinks says. “That allows doctors to identify the cancer but also, by focusing a tunable laser onto that area, the dye will absorb the energy of the laser and ultimately kill the cancer cell. So this is a form of targeted chemotherapy.”

Professor David Muddiman’s research group in chemistry is developing state-of-the-art analytical techniques for forensic analysis of dyed fibers.

Assistant professor Frank Hunte’s group in materials science and engineering is interested in developing new dye applications with improved infrared absorption signatures that can prevent military personnel from being detected by night-vision scopes.

Hinks says the next generation of analytical chemists and forensic scientists will build their skills through experiential education opportunities as undergraduate and graduate researchers who contribute to the forensic science database. Textiles scientists and engineers will study it for ways to create environmentally responsible dyes that can be applied to textiles, paper, packaging, cosmetics, hair coloring and a host of other products and applications.

Thanks to Internet sharing tools, chemists around the world will be ultimately be able to use data such as 3-D crystallographic models of the chemical structures that the late Max Weaver, longtime dye research leader for Eastman, drew by hand on glass vials. NC State will digitize and post the structures along with key cheminformatics data using ChemSpider, a free online resource by the Royal Society of Chemistry, which is partnering with NC State on the dye library. The tool allows users to search for chemical compounds or fragments of compounds.

The donation of the dye collection builds on NC State’s existing partnership with Eastman. Under a 2012 agreement, NC State became an Eastman Chemical Center of Excellence and the recipient of $10 million over six years.

In this year’s collections, 3D printers, laminate flooring components and automotive primer took their place alongside sewing machines, needle and thread, and dyes.

Senior art + design major Gillian Paige’s collection utilized nontraditional materials and unusual modes of manufacturing. When she started working on the first dress in her collection, she incorporated a foam typically used as a sublayer beneath laminate flooring.

A 3D-printed bracelet, designed by Gillian Paige.

“The guys at Home Depot gave me a funny look when I picked it up and told them what I was using it for,” Paige said.

The foam was too thick and heavy to sew through, but she found another place for it elsewhere in her collection. The lessons of that first piece informed her subsequent efforts. Seeking a similar effect for a jacket, she replaced the foam with pellon, a lighter polyester material used in quilting.

The same bracelet, after priming and painting.

Paige turned to a cutting-edge tool to make necklaces and bracelets for her runway models to wear: the 3D printer in the Makerspace at Hunt Library. She worked with fellow art + design student Andrea Danchi and industrial design student Will Marrs to create digital versions of her jewelry for the printer to use.

Once the printer had created her jewelry, painting and sizing it posed a challenge, but Paige came up with a solution: She used the aforementioned automotive primer and metallic paint to put a chrome finish on the plastic pieces.

“I was amazed I was able to have jewelry after one day from the 3D printer,” Paige said. “I think they turned out really amazing.”

The engineering side of that project focuses on creating two-dimensional materials that fold themselves into three-dimensional shapes when they’re exposed to heat and light. Folding was a major theme of Cannon’s collection.

“I was trying to figure out a way that these materials could fold around themselves on top of the human body and have their own self-movement,” Cannon said.

As an Anni Albers Scholar, Cannon is working toward two degrees, one in art + design and one in textile technology. Shuttling back and forth between studio-based courses at the College of Design and research labs at the College of Textiles has given her a unique perspective on the relationship between materials and fashion.

“I’m learning how to design textiles, how to knit and weave them,” she said. “And in my studio-based design courses, I’m using them to bring my (fashion) ideas to life.”

The couture and craftsmanship evident in this year’s collections present a sharp contrast with Art2Wear’s early years, said faculty advisor Katherine DiuGiud. Now an assistant professor of art + design, DiuGiud was a design student and Art2Wear participant in the mid-2000s. She remembers seeing dresses held together with staples back in those days.

The artistic and technological advances made in students’ collections since then are a reflection of NC State’s focus on experiential education, Paige said.

“The College of Design always pushes us to find new ways of doing things, to look for new materials,” she said.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/05/fashioning-solutions/feed/0Jasper Awarded Fulbrighthttps://news.ncsu.edu/2014/04/jasper-awarded-fulbright/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/04/jasper-awarded-fulbright/#respondThu, 03 Apr 2014 13:56:15 +0000http://news.ncsu.edu/?p=23479Professor Warren J. Jasper, program director in textile engineering, has been awarded a Fulbright Specialist Grant in Engineering Education at the Shenkar College of Engineering, Design and Art in Israel.
Warren Jasper will travel to Israel on a Fulbright grant.

In Israel, Jasper will give lectures on Six Sigma Quality and on communicating color between different disciplines. Although color is a perceived experience and not measurable in scientific units, it is of great importance in a variety of human endeavors ranging from art to physics. Jasper’s talk will focus on the links between describing color and color differences in art, science and engineering.

Six Sigma Quality and Lean Six Sigma are methodologies that reduce defects and waste in manufacturing while optimizing resources.

In addition to these lectures, Jasper will help set up a semester abroad program between Shenkar and NC State, which does not have a semester study abroad program in the Middle East.

]]>https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/04/jasper-awarded-fulbright/feed/0Nomination Committee Appointedhttps://news.ncsu.edu/2014/02/nomination-committee-appointed/
https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/02/nomination-committee-appointed/#respondWed, 19 Feb 2014 20:36:34 +0000http://news.ncsu.edu/?p=22965Provost Warwick Arden has appointed a multidisciplinary committee to lead the search for a new dean for the College of Textiles. Blanton Godfrey is stepping down as dean in June to return to the faculty.